By HANNAH PARSONS
Contributing Writer
In many professional fields, there is a question on job applications regarding your mental health history, if you have ever been prescribed medication, been hospitalized, or sought help from a professional. In many cases, this is discouraging to people who want to check yes but are not prepared to divulge this information to a stranger. However, it also is a preventative factor in young, ambitious people to not seek mental help because of the potential repercussions down the line. In fields such as the military, high-clearance law enforcement, and even on Wall Street, psychological tolerance is a large factor in clearing the process. Young men and women are not seeking help in hopes of becoming employed in one of these high-stress jobs, and it can be severely damaging. Jennifer Norris speaks to this, claiming that despite how much she loved serving in the National Guard, she couldn’t disclose information about therapy that she had previously undergone, and as a result did not re-apply. Seeking therapy should not determine a person’s ability to perform a job, as people seek therapy for many reasons. For example, if someone struggles with substance abuse from their teenage years, and they have been sober for six, seven, eight years, that shouldn’t determine their capability to perform a job after counseling. Teenagers and people with pre-existing mental health disorders are more at risk for addiction than other populations, and this can later lead to more than $740 billion lost in workplace productivity and other costs. However, substance abuse in the workplace is also a major issue, and could be prevented if therapy and counseling were encouraged in these environments. Bob Poznanovich, the president and CEO of Addiction Intervention Resources, firsthand claimed that he would most likely have not become addicted to cocaine had his workplace reached out to him and gotten him help, but he believed in his work and career so much and was performing well that he felt he couldn’t say anything. Through an anonymous story published by the Massachusetts Medical Society, there is a firsthand account of a young person who became addicted to uppers in medical school. Had they been properly assisted in receiving counseling and ways to deal with stress, especially in a high achieving environment like medical school, this addiction may not have happened. Mental health is an extremely important thing to have a handle on, and the tools that counseling, therapy, or even just a conversation with a friend can have on a person is impactful for life. Without understanding the way we think and the way we process situations, it is impossible to start combating negative responses that we might have to different circumstances. Professional fields should understand this and see it as a sign of strength that an applicant has enough self-awareness to seek an understanding of their own mind. As a society, we implore corporations, law enforcement agencies, and any potential employer to consider this in the application process, and firmly request that you do not discount an applicant based on therapeutic history.
